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Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Super Simple 4-Step Chicken Pot Pie

This is one of Lily and Canon's favorite meals... they loves peas and carrots; and the chunks of tender chicken along with a flaky crust are both easy for them to manage. There are probably more "sophisticated" ways of making this, but this recipe is for the person who needs to put lunch or dinner together easily and quickly. Although is is very homey and comforting in the end.

For this recipe, I like to use left-over, cooked chicken that I have in the freezer. Any time I need to cook chicken for gumbo, dumplings, etc., I cook the whole chicken and freeze half. This is one of my favorite uses for "the other half." Cook and prep once, eat twice!

Ingredients:
1 box Pillsbury rollout pie crust (red box)

½ chicken, cooked and cut into pieces (** could also use large can of chunk white chicken – Tyson, etc.)

½ - 1 whole bag frozen mixed vegetables – I like Green Giant best

1 can cream of chicken (or cream of celery) soup

to taste salt & pepper

to taste poultry seasoning

to taste garlic powder (not too much)

* optional - you could also add a little creamed sherry if you want to make it a little more "grown up."

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 425F. Take pie crust out of refrigerator to warm up a bit. If it’s too cold, you won’t be able to roll it out without it breaking. Once it has softened up, use it as the bottom layer to the pie. Place bottom pie crust in glass pie plate. Just let it fold over the outside.

2. Fill the crust with chicken chunks, then veggies, then seasonings, then soup.

**we like lots of veggies, so I use the whole pack, but you could cut back to half a pack if you are a bigger fan of more meat, less veggies.

3. Cover with top crust. Fold top crust over bottom crust on the edges. Crimp together with your fingers. Push the “crust” down so that it’s even with the top of the plate – helps to keep it from burning. Cut some slits in the crust so steam, etc can escape.

**Time saving tip**

You can cover with plastic wrap at this point and put into freezer (for long term) or refrigerator (for the next day, etc). Then just pop it into the oven when you get home from work!

4. When ready to cook: Cover with aluminum foil on the edges. I like to take a square of it, fold in quarters, then cut a quarter circle – then you have a circular cutout in middle when you open it. Place over outside crust to protect from burning. You will remove it for the last 15 – 20 minutes of baking to brown. If you don’t cover the edges, they will burn before the rest of the crust is done.

You won’t be able to see any more “transluscent” areas of the crust when its done. Will all be golden brown. (about 45 min)

Method:

1.
Preheat oven to 425F. Take pie crust out of refrigerator to warm up a
bit. If it’s too cold, you won’t be able to roll it out without it
breaking. Once it has softened up, use it as the bottom layer to the
pie. Place bottom pie crust in glass pie plate. Just let it fold over
the outside.

2. Fill the crust with chicken chunks, then veggies, then seasonings, then soup.

**we
like lots of veggies, so I use the whole pack, but you could cut back
to half a pack if you are a bigger fan of more meat, less veggies.

3. Cover with top crust. Fold top crust over bottom crust on the edges.
Crimp together with your fingers. Push the “crust” down so that it’s
even with the top of the plate – helps to keep it from burning. Cut some
slits in the crust so steam, etc can escape.

**Time saving tip**

You
can cover with plastic wrap at this point and put into freezer (for
long term) or refrigerator (for the next day, etc). Then just pop it
into the oven when you get home from work!

4.
When ready to cook: Cover with aluminum foil on the edges. I like to
take a square of it, fold in quarters, then cut a quarter circle – then
you have a circular cutout in middle when you open it. Place over
outside crust to protect from burning. You will remove it for the last
15 – 20 minutes of baking to brown. If you don’t cover the edges, they
will burn before the rest of the crust is done.

You won’t be able to see any more “transluscent” areas of the crust when its done. Will all be golden brown. (about 45 min)

About Me

I am the prototypical modern American mom. During the day, I work full time as a professor of Anatomy & Physiology at a private Christian University. When I get home, the real work begins as the mother of four beautiful children (3 boys and 1 girl).

I grew up in South Louisiana where the best food in the world is routinely brought from the garden and the water, and put on the table. Everyone in my family of origin is a wonderful cook, so I guess it is just natural that I show my love to my family through food.

I love cooking and eating... and teaching my children the art and techniques of being in the kitchen. My mother taught me that there is always SOME part of the cooking process that even small children can help with...so my kids are indeed very familiar with the kitchen, the kitchen tools, use of homegrown herbs, etc.